The Commissioner of Police in Lagos State, Fayoade Adegoke, has declared that no police officer is permitted to search the phones of any Nigerian, urging citizens not to oblige such requests.
He said that was the responsibility of the Police Force’s cyber branch and added that if a police officer had any suspicions, they would bring the suspect to the station so the phone could be checked.
A statement by the management of Melody FM, 107.7FM, signed by Kunle Babarinde which was made available to Africa Today News, New York noted the CP said this when he visited the radio station at Iyana-Ipaja on Wednesday.
He commended the radio station for its efforts to provide the public with information.
Kayode reaffirmed that bail was unrestricted while urging the public to expose corrupt police officers.
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“If you feel you have been cheated by a policeman or a policeman engaged in corruption, kindly report the policeman to his DPO. If the DPO is not forthcoming, report to the Area Commander. I believe your case will be solved but if you still feel cheated, please report to me directly. My phone number is open to all Lagosians,” the statement quoted the CP as saying.
The CP also said, “No policeman has the right to beat citizens. You, the people, are the government’s employers; your taxes support us. Thus, we have to treat you with the appropriate decency.”
“On the issue of searching phones, no policeman has the right to search your phone. If a policeman suspects anything on your phone, he will take you to the station to search the phone. We have a cyber department that deals with all that,” he added.
Africa Today News, New York reports that Nigerians have often called out the police for searching phones of citizens without a valid search warrants.